


A Martyr For My Love For You - Chapter 1

by rottendoctor



Category: Jack White - Fandom, White Stripes
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-02-26
Updated: 2013-02-25
Packaged: 2017-12-03 15:52:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/699951
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rottendoctor/pseuds/rottendoctor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Boy meets girl, etc.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Martyr For My Love For You - Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Criticism appreciated.

                Jack watched her walk out of the zoo gates. She had on ruby-red ankle boots that pushed her to hover around six feet tall. She looked to be about sixteen, though she appeared too uncomfortable with the surrounding teenagers to be anything less than forty. Her demeanor was annoyed, a little anxious, being in a sea of her peers. She had black hair that curled a little past her slouched shoulders. Auburn roots were on the verge of being exposed towards the top of her head. Her cheekbones were well-defined, her skin stretched pale and tight against them. She was wearing tight but wrinkled black jeans and a shirt to match her boots; deep red, plain.

     A loud dirty-blonde girl in blue jeans and a baby- pink fleece ran by with her friend, laughing and yelling, hitting the teen’s shoulder. She looked up, startled out of her walking daze. With a gasp she flew forward, stumbling, about to full-on trip. Jack, who was about three feet away, leapt forward to catch her.

     With a chuckle he tossed out a, “Maybe those ruby shoes are a little cumbersome for you!”

     She scowled, clearly embarrassed, and let out a harsh laugh. Her voice was surprisingly raspy when she thanked him. “I wasn’t paying attention,” she choppily explained, avoiding eye contact.  

     He smiled. They both teetered awkwardly, waiting for the other to speak. Suddenly, after a moment of what appeared to be thinking, Jack asked, “Would you like to take another walk through the zoo? I’ll pay, if you’d like.”

     She considered it for a moment, habitually gnawing on the inside of her lower lip. “Why?” she demanded.

     Jack, not missing a beat, responded, “I just saved your life and you’re questioning my motives?”

     She slowly nodded, considering, before sticking out a large, cold hand. “I’m Mary,” she said. He grasped her hand with his bigger, warmer hand.

     “Jack,” he smiled.

     They briefly held on, sizing each other up. A dark blush had filled her face when she had recovered from her stumble and her cheeks still showed a sliver of red. She openly studied him in return. His black curls framed an angular yet sweet, boyish face. His hazel eyes had narrowed slightly when she had introduced herself, and they were still appearing to be pondering, wondering about her. A tight black shirt showed off pale, muscular arms and a fit torso. He was wearing a simple pair of jeans and some shiny, black shoes with small boot heels.

     With a nod and slight smile, he let go and motioned for her to walk ahead of him through the gates while he quickly bought their two admission tickets.

     Mary was a disconcerting girl. Slightly pigeon-toed, her strides were large and a bit crooked. She looked down when others walked past her, occasionally glancing up through her blunted bangs to give a brief acknowledging smile. She walked with overbearing purpose and confidence despite the lack of eye contact.  Jack, starting to reconsider his hasty decision to advance upon this girl, snatched up their tickets and started after her.

      After a moment of silently walking, Jack a few paces behind her, they found themselves approaching the first exhibit; penguins, darting around in chemical-blue water. A gaggle of young children shouted and laughed, chubby faces and sweaty palms pressed to the glass porthole windows.

     Mary halted, waiting for Jack to appear at her side. They stood close together, Mary curiously eyeing a penguin with a spiky, yellow hairdo, Jack eyeing his shoes and then looking around at all of the people. He turned his attention to Mary. She fidgeted and looked down, clearing her throat, uncomfortable with the attention.

     When he still didn’t turn away she looked up at him and asked, “Yeah? Why are you looking at me?” She saw his eyebrows rise slightly before he turned away. He watched out of the corner of his eye as she opened and closed her mouth, trying to speak. He waited. Finally, after a deep breath and a slight straightening of the shoulders, she disinterestedly asked, “Would you like to get something to eat and then come back and finish the exhibits?”

     Jack smiled. “Alright, know any good places?” he asked.

     She nodded and, with an expected suddenness, wove back through the exhibits and out of the gates. When they emerged on to the sidewalk, she squinted, shading her eyes with one hand and using the other to point to a shabby, boxy building. With a satisfied tone she announced, “There.”

     He nodded, letting his head bob a bit before claiming her hand. She made a choked noise and yanked her hand away.

     With anger in her voice she said, “Right, how silly of me to question your motives. What was I thinking?” He looked down and when he looked back, she had begun walking towards the building.

      He caught up with her (his arrival was met with an exasperated scoff) and walked with her up the street and through the glass doors of the café. It smelled like coffee and mothballs. There were two booths, some smudged windows, a bar with some old stools covered with cracked brown leather, and a few wooden tables with white cloths placed over the tops of them. He shut the door behind him, gladly leaving behind the Nashville heat.  They walked up to the counter together, figuring out what to get.

      A pretty raven-haired girl took their orders. Mary, without much hesitation, asked for a house salad and a bottle of water. Jack, after scanning the menu for a minute, settled on a ham sandwich and chocolate malt.

     Mary pulled a crumpled twenty dollar bill out of her back pocket and clutched it, absentmindedly squeezing and releasing her fist around it until the girl behind the counter read out the price. Mary then handed it over, rocking back and forth on her heels, awaiting her change. Jack grabbed their lunches and headed towards the window booth, Mary closely behind him. They sat down and wordlessly opened and began to eat their meals.

     Jack cleared his throat. “So, Mary, what brings you to the zoo today?”

     She shrugged and picked at a strip of paper-thin shredded carrot.

     “What’s your favorite exhibit?” he pushed. Again, she gnawed on the inside of her lip.

     “The tortoises,” Mary replied. Jack decided to push her even further.

     “Why?”

     She shrugged again, stabbing her fork into soggy purple lettuce. They both focused on their meals, listening to the faint music playing through speakers in the water-damaged ceiling, pretending that the silence between them wasn’t strained. She took a deep breath and asked, “Why did you hold my hand?” Jack looked up from his meal, eyebrows raised.

     “I wanted to. I’m sorry if it bothered you,” he offered.

     “It did bother me,” she heatedly replied. “I don’t even know who you are and you try to make a move on me? It’s disgusting.” Jack smiled, enjoying winding her up.

     “How do you know it wasn’t just a friendship hold?” he inquired, raising his eyebrows, brown eyes sparkling.

     “Because we’re not friends!” she spat. She grabbed her aluminum salad box and water bottle and started to get up to leave. Jack watched Mary, a slight smile on his face. “I’m glad you enjoyed yourself,” she dramatically hissed as she turned and headed for the door. He watched her push it open and head back down the sidewalk. 


End file.
